Beef Wellington

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 220 °C (200 °C fan). Brush the fillet with oil, season with salt and pepper and roast on a tray for about 15 minutes for pink meat. Remove, leave to cool and put in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
2. Chop the mushrooms so finely that they look like coarse breadcrumbs (only pulse briefly in a blender, they should not turn into a paste). Cook with the butter, thyme and a little oil over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring often, until soft.
3. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper, add the white wine and reduce for about 10 minutes until all the liquid has evaporated and the mixture holds its shape. Remove the thyme and leave the duxelles to cool.
4. Lay out two sheets of cling film and arrange the ham on top in a double row, slightly overlapping. Spread half of the mushroom mixture over it, set the fillet on top and cover with the remaining mixture.
5. Using the film, roll the ham tightly around the fillet, twist the ends and chill the parcel. Meanwhile roll out one third of the puff pastry to a strip of about 18 × 30 cm and the rest to about 28 × 36 cm.
6. Unwrap the fillet and set it on the smaller strip of pastry, brush the pastry edge and the fillet with egg yolk, lay the larger piece of pastry over it and press down at the sides. Trim the edge to about 4 cm, seal with a fork, brush all over with egg yolk and score a diamond pattern with the back of a knife without cutting through the pastry.
7. Chill for at least 30 minutes (up to 24 hours). Set the oven to 200 °C (180 °C fan), brush the Wellington once more thinly with egg yolk and bake for 20 to 25 minutes for pink, 30 minutes for medium, until the pastry is golden brown and crisp.
8. Rest for 10 minutes before slicing, and cut into thick slices.

Drink with it

• Red wine · excellent match

  Right Bank Bordeaux (Pomerol, Saint-Émilion) or Pinot Noir

  Fine, ripe tannins and truffly, earthy notes carry the mushroom duxelles, and the puff pastry cushions the tannin without overwhelming the tender fillet.

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• Sparkling wine · good match

  Champagne Brut or Crémant de Bourgogne

  Bubbles and acidity cut the butter pastry's richness and suit mushroom and ham.

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• Dark beer · good match

  English brown ale or dark lager, not too sweet

  Malty, roasted notes mirror the pastry crust and the mushroom duxelles.

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